Wild Wedding Weekend!

The overall theme of my Memorial Day weekend was WEDDINGS. One on Saturday (Colleen & JP Morgan in Woodbridge, VA) and another on Sunday (Megan & Paul Turkevich in New Orleans, LA). Both weddings were joyous events! The colors both brides used for their weddings were pink & gold. (I am going to be the Maid of Honor in a pink & gold wedding next year so I took LOTS of pictures for the bride-to-be).

Colleen & JP had a Catholic ceremony followed by a reception at a nearby yacht club. They had butter in the shape of roses, a beautiful ombre wedding cake, and guests that danced like party animals!

Megan and Paul had an outdoor, evening ceremony at a historic building in New Orleans followed by an indoor reception in a large event hall. They served shrimp & grits as appetizers, had a killer photo booth and hired a brass band  to lead us in a parade around the city! Mr. Handsome and I stayed 3 more days in New Orleans to tour the city and eat an unhealthy amount of beignets, po'boys and oysters. 

Congratulations to both couples!

SAVOR: (Beer-A-Palooza)

This past week was packed with fun adventures. On Thursday afternoon me and a few co-workers headed to Flying Dog Brewery in Frederick, MD for a "Backyard Symposium." We drank Deadrise Summer Ale (their new seasonal brewed with Old Bay seasoning!) and listened to industry big-wigs talk about the state of the industry and the importance of product quality. Gotta love work field trips!

Saturday morning me & Mama Leister drove to a park in Arlington to participate in AWLA's Walk for the Animals. The 3 mile walk benefited the shelter I volunteer for each month in Shirlington. There were hundreds of puppies, the weather was absolutely beautiful, and all participants got free t-shirts and tote bags. (YEAH SWAG!) My favorite dog was a fat dachshund named Buddy...

Saturday night I attended one of the greatest beer events of the year... SAVOR DC! Breweries from around the country came together at the National Building Museum to serve their terrific beers to thirsty consumers and industry professionals (like myself). All of the beers were paired with tasty finger foods like salmon ceviche, sticky toffee pudding and strawberry rhubarb tarts. The best part of my night was meeting Kim Jordan, the female founder/owner of New Belgium Brewing (Aka- My role model!) The second best part of the night was meeting David Walker, the delightful British co-owner of Firestone Walker Brewing in CA. 

Our Trip to Norway! (Nogne O Tasting)

Mr. Handsome and I put our faces on and took a trip to Norway after work on Wednesday! More specifically, we went to the Norwegian Embassy for a beer tasting courtesy of the lovely importers as Shelton Brothers. (In other words: My awesome beer reps gave me, their favorite retail partner, an invitation to the tasting with a +1 ticket!)

We walked over a mile through torrential rain from the metro to the ambassador's residence in DC. Once there, we were served a variety of tasty beers from Norway's Nogne O Brewery as well as European delicacies such as brownies w/ caramel goat cheese, lettuce wraps w/ salmon mousse & roe, and smoked halibut accented with wasabi & avocado cream. NOM NOM NOM!

We are now besties with the Norwegian Ambassador and his staff. We've also been invited to a dude named Rocco's bar in downtown Philly, the Fairmont Hotel's free happy hours, and several random breweries in Bumble-Town Louisiana. (We're such social butterflies).

As the Norwegian's say... "DRIKKE OG FEST!" (Translated into English... "DRINK AND PARTY!")

Happy Weekend!

It's been a fun weekend here in DC! Friday was my 5 year "Date-A-Versary" w/ Mr. Handsome so we went out to a special dinner at Eventide in Arlington. The manager sent us free champagne to honor the occasion and we stuffed our faces with ahi tuna, cod, nachos, and biscuits! (NOM)

My buddy Erika came into town on Saturday to run the Nike's Women's Half Marathon. It's an awesome new race that gives out medals custom designed by Tiffany & Co. (Yes, I will be entering next year). We got to romp around the city visiting the Botanical Gardens, the Capitol, and the Nike's Women's race expo where we got to met Shalene Flanagan! (An Olympian and near medalist in this year's Boston Marathon).

Shalene Flanagan!

The Capitol

Cacti at the Botanical Gardens

Blooming Tulips at the Botanical Gardens

A piano full of shrubbery!

I Made It Through The Wilderness! (Camping)

I left work early this past Friday to embrace the wilderness and go camping w/ some buddies out in Centerville, VA! We pitched our tents at a lovely camp site only 100 yards from both the full-service bathroom facilities and the camp store. (Hot tea was provided in the morning fresh from the site's Keurig!)

For me, that's roughing it. Prior to this outing I considered camping staying at a low-quality hotel. I dabbled in a little bit of Girl Scouting back in the day but quit once I finally realized you can still get the cookies without wearing the dorky vests. To say the least, camping has never my forte. I "came down with the flu" whenever our Girl Scout troop headed out to sleep in the woods.

Here are some photos from my night in the wild! We roasted S'mores, drank snobby craft beers, played with our camp-fire pet (Gizmo the Corgi) and took lots of walks through nature.

Luke's Lobster

All week long I've been craving a lobster roll. A delightful, flavorful, buttery sandwich filled with chunks of seafood goodness. To fulfill my craving, Mr. Handsome and I walked to Georgetown last night to patron Luke's Lobster, a little seafood joint right off M street. Luke's has a small, New England town feel and is rated 4 1/2 stars on Yelp. Not to mention, it offers INCREDIBLE lobster rolls, crab rolls, lobster bisque, clam chowder, and sodas/chips native to the New England region.

To say the least- Luke's completely satisfied my craving for delicious Maine lobster. Here are a few fun facts about lobsters you may not have known...

• Prior to the Mid-19th century lobster was actually considered a food for peasants & a mark of poverty, served only to indentured servants and prison inmates. It wasn't until Bostonians and New Yorkers developed a taste for it that lobster became a popular seafood option at upscale restaurants.
• It is estimated that lobsters can live for up to 100 years! (Unless they are caught by fishermen and cooked for consumption to nourish my belly).
• Unlike most animal species, lobsters are monogamous and mate with the same partner for life. Some other animal friends that mate for life are swans, wolves, bald eagles and turtle doves.

Lobster love all around!

Colleen's Bridal Shower

Yesterday I went to my friend Colleen's bridal shower out in Farifax Station. Colleen and I met on a trip to Nicaragua back in college where we taught English to little ninos in the small town of Matagalpa. (Probably the most cultural experience I've ever had).

Yours truly was the one who actually lit the sparks between Colleeen & her fiance, JP Morgan. A couple days into the trip, JP secretly told me that he TOTALLY liked Colleen. Being the good friend that I was, I went and told Colleen that JP TOTALLY liked her. Turns out, she TOTALLY liked him too! Ergo, I was the matchmaker extraordinaire that got this happy couple together. You're welcome.

Here are some pictures from Colleen's tea party bridal shower yesterday afternoon...

Congratulations to the happy couple! See you at the wedding in May.